Rajasthan- Complete Tour to Its Palaces and Forts

DAY 01 : Paris / Delhi

Arrival in Delhi. Meet at the airport and transfer to the hotel by air-conditioned coach. Welcome to the hotel – flower necklaces and welcome drink. Check-in at the hotel. Overnight stay at the hotel.

 

DAY 02 : Delhi

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. In the morning travel by bus to Old Delhi. Walking tour of the old market and visit to the great Jama Masdjid Mosque, the largest mosque in India, opposite the Red Fort. Afternoon visit to New Delhi – built by the British: the British Government House, designed by architect Lutyens, the gateway to India. Visit the tomb of the Mughal emperor Humayun. Humayun’s tomb was the prototype of the Mughal tombs of which the Taj Mahal is the most illustrious model. Visit the Qutab Minar (Tower of Victory), the highest man-made tower in the country at 72.5m high. Then drive past the India Gate and the Presidential Palace and through Connaught Place, the commercial centre of the new Delhi. Return to the hotel. Buffet dinner and overnight at the hotel.

 

DAY 03 : Delhi / Jodhpur by air

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Morning Flight to Jodhpur (0925/1110). Arrive Jodhpur, transfer and check in. If Jaipur was nicknamed “Pink City”, Jodhpur is certainly called “Blue City” because of the characteristic blue hue of its old houses: the facades of the houses vary from sky blue to cyan blue with yellow exceptions. Rajasthan’s second city, once the capital of Marwar, is spread around the impressive Mehrangarh fort, built on a 122m high rock mass. Situated on the edge of the Thar Desert bordering Pakistan, Jodhpur was founded on the old strategic Delhi-Gujarat route used for the Marwari-run trade in opium, copper, silk, dates and coffee among other things. This afternoon we will visit the Mehrangarh Fort which rises up from a 120m high rock above the plain. Within its ramparts, the maharajas built a luxurious palace, now transformed into a museum which houses superb collections of weapons, miniatures, sedan chairs and other princely objects. Then return to Jodhpur and walk through the Clock Quarter in the old city with the fruit, vegetable and spice bazaar and the small trades of the city. Return to the hotel. Buffet dinner and overnight at hotel.

 

DAY 04 : Jodhpur / Jaisalmer (Meal at FORT POKHARAN)

Breakfast at hotel. Drive to Jaisalmer through the Thar Desert (280 km / 6 hrs). En route, lunch at Pokharan Fort. JAISALMER, a magical city, deeply romantic and totally preserved, it has been nicknamed as the Golden City because of the colour of the stone walls at sunset. Centuries ago, the city prospered because of its strategic position on the caravan route from India to Central Asia. Traders and towns people built sumptuous mansions, with delicate carvings in wood and golden sandstone. On arrival, check into hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 05 : Jaisalmer

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Visit this fascinating city located in the middle of the desert. Surrounded by walls and topped by an imposing citadel, Jaisalmer transports us to the medieval India of the proud Rajput princes. Discovery of the Citadel with its 99 towers, and its 4 gates that one must cross successively to reach the main square. Visit of the Citadel. It has preserved intact all an unreal decoration of openwork facades, a homogeneous architectural beauty, the Jain Temples, the Palace and the Fort of the Upper City, the Havelis of Patwan, Salim and Nathmal and the new Palace of the Lower City.

 

DAY 06 : Jaisalmer / Bikaner (meal at GAJNER PALACE)

Excursion to the Sam Sand Dune. Camel ride in the dunes. Sunset on the dunes. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight. Breakfast at the hotel. Drive to Bikaner (330 kms / 7 hrs). Arrival and check in at your hotel. This afternoon discover the vast fort of Junagarh, built in 1593, remarkable by its set of courtyards and richly decorated rooms. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 07 : Bikaner / Mandawa

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning visit Bikaner, a city built in the middle of the desert, was an important stop on the ancient caravan route linking Central Asia and North India to the ports of Gujarat, long before Prince Rao Bikaji, of the Rathor clan, founded the city of Bikaner on its site in 1488. Then departure by road to Mandawa (180 kms/03 hrs). Crossing the north-east of Shekhawati, opportunity to continue your discovery of havelis with, for example, those of Fatehpur as well as the monumental water wells which make this road in the heart of the desert green in places. Check in at the hotel. Afternoon visit of Mandawa, a typical village of Shekhawati with a pleasant walk will allow you to discover the sumptuous HAVELIS, rich patrician residences built in the last century by merchants anxious to mark their presence. The Havelis are painted with superb frescoes representing scenes of hunting, dances and scenes from Hindu mythology. Return to the hotel for dinner and overnight.

 

DAY 08 : Mandawa / Jaipur

Breakfast at the hotel. This morning departure by road to Nawalgarh (40Kms / 1hr). Discover the beautiful mansions called Havelis, built by rich merchants and whose painted facades give a unique character to these villages. Continuation to Jaipur (150 kms / 3h). On arrival, check in at the hotel. Buffet dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

 

DAY 09 : Jaipur (meal at T SAMODE HAVELI)

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Departure for the visit of Amber Fort in Jaipur by jeeps (4 pax per jeep). Founded by the Minas tribe, it was taken over in 1037 by the Rajputs, who made it their capital until they abandoned it in favour of Jaipur, a modern city built in 1728 on a chequered plan by Maharaja Jai Singh II. Visit the majestic halls, marble and sandstone pillars, corridors and secret passages, small rooms which still keep vestiges of their refined decoration, paintings, mirrors, stained glass windows of Murano. And temples, at least one of which is still active, dedicated to the goddess Kali. Descent by jeeps and return to Jaipur by air-conditioned coaches. Buffet lunch at the SAMODE HAVELI hotel. Afternoon tour of Jaipur. Visit the City Palace – A City within a City. At the heart of the city, the sprawling City Palace occupies two of the nine quarters that originally made up the city of Jai Singh II. The Palace, in the Rajput style, is remarkable for the abundance of detail and richness of decoration, and is distinguished by a succession of palaces with different functions. Within its walls are a textile and costume museum, collections of miniatures and weapons, the audience hall and courtyards with richly decorated doors. The most remarkable buildings are Diwan-i-Am, the public audience hall, Chandra Mahal, the moon palace, where the present Maharajah lives, is closed to the public. Then visit the Jantar Mantar, the observatory of the maharajahs of Jaipur: immense astronomical instruments in sandstone painted in yellow and marble testify to the passion of Maharajah Sawai Jai Singh II for the sciences of the sky. Futuristic architecture of sundials, zodiac signs and other astrolabes. A huge triangle dominates this science fictional space, the Samrat Yantra allows you to read the time and the position of the planets. On the way to the hotel, you will admire the amazing : Hawa Mahal “Palace of the Winds” a finely carved pink sandstone facade behind which the women of the court hid. Its five-storey façade, decorated with niches, has no less than nine hundred and fifty-three curved windows. Return to the hotel. Buffet dinner and overnight at the hotel.

 

DAY 10 : Jaipur / Fatehpur Sikri / Agra (meal at LAXMI NIWAS PALACE BHARATPUR)

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Morning departure by road to Agra (232 kms/05 hrs). En route visit Fatehpur Sikri, an amazing capital city of a few decades which was abandoned. Fatehpur Sikri was, for a short time, the capital of the Mughal Empire. Built of red sandstone in 1571 by Emperor Akbar, it is a collection of palaces and mosques set on a rocky and abandoned plateau. Classified as a World Heritage Site, this is a site of great beauty and according to the purists, the most beautiful site built by the Mughals, superior even to the Taj Mahal. Visit of the site and departure for Bharatpur. Buffet lunch in Bharatpur. Continue to Agra. Agra is best known for the famous Taj Mahal, a luminous white marble mausoleum built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jehan to immortalize the love for his wife Mumtaz. This monument is the jewel of Mughal India. Arrive in Agra and transfer to hotel: Buffet dinner and overnight at hotel.

 

DAY 11 : Agra / Delhi

Buffet breakfast at the hotel. Morning Visit the famous Taj Mahal at sunrise. (The Taj Mahal is closed on Friday). Discover the majestic and luminous white marble mausoleum built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jehan to immortalize the love for his wife Mumtaz at sunset. The Taj Mahal commemorates the love of a beautiful queen and a great Mughal emperor. Before she died, Mumtaz Mahal made Shah Jahan promise to build a tomb that would proclaim their supreme love to all. It took twenty-two years to create this jewel that the whole world has marveled at for three centuries. Afterwards, departure to visit the Red Fort. A monument classified as World Heritage and very well restored by UNESCO. The Red Fort, the citadel of Agra, was the centre of the flourishing Mughal dynasty. Four generations of emperors participated in the construction of this imposing fort. Here sat the great rulers with their resplendent courts. The Khas Mahal, which once housed the marble and gold-clad private flats of the Mughal emperors residing at the Agra Fort, offers a unique and unusual view of the Taj Mahal, some 2km away. Afternoon departure to Delhi (200 kms/04 hrs). On arrival in Delhi, check in to your room. Buffet dinner and overnight at the hotel.

 

DAY 12 : Delhi / Paris

Buffet breakfast. Transfer to the airport for the formalities of the return flight. Overnight flight.

List of hotels

City	Hotel	Nights
Delhi	The Suryaa	02
Jodhpur	Pratap Niwas	01
Jaisalmer	Mandir Palace	02
Bikaner	Gaj Kesri	01
Mandawa	Vivaana	01
Jaipur	Hilton Jaipur	02
Agra	Double Tree by Hilton	01

Includes: Full board, superior hotels, tour guide (myself), air-conditioned bus transport and site visits

Not included: international airfare, visa to enter India, insurance, drinks and tips for driver and guide